Cupola charging apparatus



Nov. 9, 1954 DAVEL 2,693,887

CUPQLA CHARGING APPARATUS Filed March 28, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I NVEN TOR.

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Nov. 9, 1954 Filed March 28, 1952 V. P. DAVEL CUPOLA CHARGING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 carriage track adjacent the United States Patent O CUPOLA CHARGING APPARATUS Vernal P. Davel, Belgium, Wis.,

Equipment Company, poration of Wisconsin Port Washington, Wis., a cor- 4 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in cupola charging apparatus.

In the development of cupolas of the sealed type and of charging apparatus for use with cupolas of this type, it has been found desirable to have a cupola charging bucket equipped with a bottom closure which can be opened to discharge the load into the cupola, and then closed while the bucket is still in cupola charging position.

Copending application of Harold W. Schwengel for Improvements in Cupolas and Charging Apparatus Therefor, Serial No. 279,877, filed April 1, 1952, shows and describes a cupola of the sealed type and a bucket of the general type referred to above. In the structure disclosed in this copending application there is a .pair of motor-driven cable drums mounted on the skip-carriage and connected by cables to the bottom closure of the bucket for actuating the latter. In addition to these motor driven drums there is another set of power driven drums connected by cables to the skip-carriage for moving the latter between loading and charging positions.

It is a general object of the invention to provide an improved cupola charging apparatus of the class descri ed wherein the bottom closure member of the bucket and the skip-carriage are actuated by the same source of power and by the same cables.

A further object of the invention is to provide an imassignor to Modern proved cupola charging apparatus of the class described Y wherein there is releasable means for locking the skipcarriage and bucket in cupola charging position.

A further, more specific object of the invention is to provide an improved cupola charging apparatus of the class described wherein there is a reversible power source,

and wherein the same cables are connected to the bottoni closure of the bucket, to the skip-carriage, and to the power source in a manner to simultaneously urge the bottom closure toward closed position and the carriage and bucket toward cupola charging position in response to tension on the cable created by said power source; there being releasable means for locking the bucket in cupola charging position so that the power source may be reversed to allow the bottom closure to move to open posi-' tion while the bucket and skip-carriage are thus locked.

A further specific object of the invention is to provide an improved cupola charging apparatus of the class described wherein there is a plunger mounted on the skipcharging position of the skipcarriage, which plunger is engageable with the carriage when the latter is in charging position, to thereby lock the carriage in said position.

A further object of the invention is to provide an im: proved cupola charging apparatus of the class described which is relatively simple in construction, which saves expense in manufacture, and which is otherwise well adapted for the purposes described.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention consists of the improved cupola charging apparatus, and all of its parts and combinations, as set forth in the claims, and all equivalents thereof.

In the drawings accompanying and forming a part of this specification, wherein one complete embodiment of the preferred form of the invention is shown, and wherein like characters of reference indicate the same parts in all of the views:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view showing the improved cupola charging apparatus associated with a cupola of the sealed type;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, transverse vertical sectional view taken through a charging bucket with the latter disposed in charging position on a cupola, a portion of the upper end of the cupola being shown in section; and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary plan view showing the charging bucket, skip-carriage, skip-carriage tracks, and associated mechanism of Fig. 1, the bucket cover being removed, and portions of the bucket being broken away and shown in section. 7 Referring more particularly to Fig. l of the drawing, the numeral 10 indicates a cupola of the sealed type, and the numeral 11 a skip-carriage track extending from a position above the cupola, downwardly and laterally. The numeral 12 indicates a cupola charging bucket, and the numeral 13 indicates a ski -carriage for supporting the bucket 12. The skip-carriage 13 is positioned to traverse the track 11 between a cupola charging position, where the bucket 12 is positioned on the upper end of the cupola 10 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and a loading position C where the skip-carriage and bucket are located in the manner shown by dot and dash lines in Fig. 1. At the position C the bucket 12 is disposed beneath a weigh hopper 14.

The skip-carriage 13 is provided with a pair of front wheels 15 approximately midway of its length and a pair of rear wheels 16 adjacent its rear end. The upper end of the track 11 is closed with a block 17 to limit the upward travel of the front skip-carriage wheels 15. Spaced from the upper end of the track 11 is an upstanding arcuate section of track 18 which branches from the track 11 and which is in a position to be traversed by the rear skip-carriage wheels 16 while the front wheels 15 are abutting the block 17. As shown in Fig. 1, when the bucket 12 is in cupola charging position, the front wheels 15 are abutting the block 17, and the rear wheels 16 are positioned at the upper end of the track section 18.

Referring to Fig. '2, the bucket 12 may have a tubular cylindrical body portion 19 with an outwardly flared upper end portion 20. The open bottom of the body portion 19 is equipped with a closure 21 which may take the form of a cone or bell, and which is provided with a central upstanding stem 22 having a cross-arm 23 pivoted to the upper end thereof. The closed position of the cone 21 is shown by solid lines in Fig. 2, whereas the open position of said cone is shown by dot and dash lines. Extending diametrically across the portion 20 of the bucket 12 is a hollow partition 24. The bucket 12 may be provided with a pair of coaxial tubular trunnions 25 which project diametrically outwardly from the portion 20 of the bucket and which communicate at their inner ends with the interior of the hollow partition 24. A pair of sheaves 26 and 27 are rotatably mounted within the-hollow partition 24 for rotation on axes normal to the axes of the trunnions 25, the sheave 26 being positioned above one end of the crossbar 23, and the sheave 27 being positioned above the other end of the crossbar 23.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the skip carriage 13 is provided with rotatably mounted sheaves 28 transversely outwardly of the trunnions 25, said trunnions being journalledin suitable bearings 29 carried by the skip-carriage. Mounted adjacent each side of the rear end of the skipcarriage 13 is a sheave 30 which is mounted for rotation on a transverse axis. Mounted on a suitable support above the upper end of the skip-carriage track 11 is a pair of reversible power driven cable drums 31 (see Fig. 1).

Referring again to Figs. 2 and 3, a cable 32 has one end connected to one end of the cross arm 23 and has an intermediate portion extending over the sheave 26, through the adjacent tubular trunnion 25, around the adjacent sheave 28, and around the adjacent sheave 30, the other end of the cable 32 being connected to and wound around one of the cable drums 31. A second cable 33, corresponding to the cable 32, has one end connected to the other end of the arm 23 and has an intermediate portion extending around sheave 27, through the adjacent tubular trunnion 25, around the adjacent sheave 28, and under the aligned sheave 30, the other end of the cable 33 being connected to and wound around the other power driven cable drum 31. A cover operating power driven cable drum 34 may be suitably mounted above the cupola 10, and the bucket cover 35 may be suitably connected thereto,'as by cables 36 and chains 37.

Suitably mounted on the arcuate track extension 18 is plunger mechanism 38, including an axially movable plunger 39. The mechanism 38 may take the form of a double acting fluid pressure operated ram. The plunger mechanism 38 is so positioned that when the plunger '39 is extended, while the skip-carriage 18 is in the cupola charging position shown in Figs. 1 and 3, theplunger is positioned under a portion of the rear end of the skipcarriage to lock the latter in charging position. Fig. 3 shows one type of mounting for the plunger mechanism 38. This mounting includes an upstanding bracket 40 and a transverse bar 41 fixed to and extending transversely between the brackets 40. The plunger mechanism 38 may be fixed intermediate the length of the transverse bar 41, as shown in Fig. 3. While only one plunger mechanism 38 is shown and described, more than one may be used if desired, and any suitable mounting therefor may be provided. The specific structure of the bucket and upper end of the cupola form no part of the present invention and are therefore not described in detail herein, said structure being described and claimed in Schwengel application Serial No. 279,877.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the forward end of the skip-carriage 18 is provided with a hook 42. Mounted adjacent the periphery of the upper end of the cupola 10 is a pair of spaced upstanding beams 43, each having a sheave 44 rotatably mounted at its upper end. A cable 45 extends over and between the sheaves 44, and outwardly of each of the sheaves 44 the cable 45 is connected to a counterweight 46.

In the operation of the improved cupola charging apparatus. the bucket 12 and skip-carriage 13 are initially positioned at C. and a predetermined weight of charge is dropped into the bucket from the weigh hopper 14. The power driven cable drums 31 are then rotated in a manner to put tension on the cables 32 and 33. Inasmuch as further upward movement of the bucket cone, when it is in closed position, is prevented by the engagement of the cone rim with the bottom of the bucket and by engagement of the cross arm '23 with the bottom wall of the partition 24, the cables will pull the skip-carriage with the bucket upwardly along the track 11 until the front wheels 15 abut the blocks 17. Continued rotation of the drums 31 then causes the rear wheels 16 to travel upwardly along the arcuate track section 18, and also causes the skip-carriage 13 to pivot in a counterclockwise direction (as viewed in Fig. 1) about the axis of the wheels 15. As the skip-carriage 13 is thus rotating, the hook 42 engages the transversely extending portion of the cable 45 which is between the sheaves 44 and pulls downwardly on said cable portion to lift the counterweights 46. When the bucket 12 and skip-carriage 13 reach the cupola charging position shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the bucket cover 35 is lowered onto the bucket from the dot and dash line position of Fig. 1. In addition, the plunger 39 of the plunger mechanism '38 is moved to locking position under a portion of the rear end of the skip-carriage, as shown in Fig. 3.

The same power driven cable drums 31 which pulled the carriage up the tracks are then rotated in a reverse direction to slacken the cables 32 and 33. This permits the bottom closure cone 21 to drop downwardly to the dot and dash line position of Fig. 2 to empty the bucket. The counterweights 46 would tend to swing the skipcarriage back in a clockwise direction while the bucket is being emptied, but the locking action of the plunger 39 prevents such movement.

After the bucket 12 has been emptied, the power driven cable drums 31 are again rotated in a direction to put tension on the cables 32 and 33 sufliciently to move the cone 21 to closed position. The bucket cover 35 is then lifted to the dot and dash line position of Fig. 1 by means of the power driven cable drum 34, and the plunger 39 of the locking mechanism is retracted to a position clear of the rear end of the skip-carriage 13. Then the power driven cable drums 31 are rotated in reverse direction to slacken the cables 32 and 33 while thecounterweights 46 swing the skip-carriage 13 in a clockwise direction to move the skip-carriage wheels '16 downwardly out of the track section 18 and into the main portion of the track 11. The skip-carriage and bucket then return to the loading station C by gravity, the cables 32 and 33 being paid out by the cable drums 31. The bucket C is then ready to be reloaded. v

It is apparent that with the improved cupola charging apparatus the bottom closure of the bucket can be opened and then closed while the bucket is in 'cupo'la charging position without requiring any power driven mechanism for accomplishing this operation other than the same mechanism 31 which is used to move the skip-carriage along the track 11. The skip-carriage locking mechanism makes it possible to use a single set of cables connected to a single power source both for moving the skip-carriage and for operating the bottom closure of the bucket.

Various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and all of such changes are contemplated as may come within the scope of the claims.

What I claim as the invention is:

1. In a cupola charging apparatus: a skip-carriage track; a skip-carriage; a cupola charging bucket supported on said carriage and having a gravity influenced bottom closure movable between open and closed positions, said bucket and carriage being movable along said track between a loading position and a cupola charging position; a cable connected at one end to the bottom closure of the bucket in a manner to urge said closure toward closed position in response to tension on the cable and to permit gravity opening of the closure when the cable is slackened; means including a reversible power source to which the other end of said cable is connected for causing said tension on the cable and also movement of the skip-carriage with the bucket toward said cupola charging position in response to operation of the power source in one direction, means responsive to said movement of the skip-carriage for thereafter causing tilting of said skip-carriage to move the bucket into charging position as a result of said tilting, and means for releasably locking the skip-carriage in said tilted position so that upon reversal of the power source the cable will sla'cken and permit opening of the bucket closure by gravity.

2. In a cupola charging apparatus: a skip-carriage track; a skip-carriage; a cupola charging bucket supported on a forward portion of said carriage and having 'a gravity influenced bottom closure movable between open and closed positions, said bucket and carriage being movable along said track between a loading position and a cupola charging position; a cable connected at one end to the bottom closure of the bucket in a manner to urge said closure toward closed position in response to tension on the cable and to permit gravity opening of the closure when the cable is slackened; means including a reversible power source to which the other end of said cable is connected for causing said tension on the cable and also movement of the skip-carriage with the bucket toward said cupola charging position in response to operation of the power source in one direction; means responsive to said movement of the skip-carriage for thereafter causing tilting of the skip-carriage, whereby its rear portion is raised and its forward portion is lowered to bring the bucket into charging position as a result of said lowering and releasable means for locking the skip-carriage in said tilted cupola charging position so that upon reversal of the power source the cable will slacken and permit opening of the bucket closure by gravity while the bucket and skip-carriage are thus locked.

3. In a cupola charging apparatus: a skip-carriage track; a skip-carriage; a cupola charging bucket supported on a forward portion of said carriage and having a gravity influenced bottom closure movable between open and closed positions, said bucket and carriage being movable along said track between a loading position and a cupola charging position; a cable connected at one end to the bottom closure of the bucket in a manner to urge said closure toward closed position in response to tension on the cable and permit gravity opening when the cable is slackened; means including a reversible power source to which the other end of said cable is connected for causing tension on the cable and also movement of the skip-carriage with the bucket toward said cupola charging position in response to operation of the power source in one direction; means responsive to said movement of the skip-carriage for thereafter causing tilting of the skipc'arri'age, whereby its rear portion is raised and 1ts fo'rwartl portion is lowered to bring the bucket into charging POSle tion as a result of said lowering releasable means mounted on the track adjacent the cupola charging position of the carriage for locking the skip-carriage in said tilted cupola charging position so that upon reversal of the power source the cable will slacken and permit-opening of the bucket closure by gravity while the bucket and skip-carriage are thus locked; and energy storing means engaged by the forward portion of the skip-carriage as the latter is being lowered for storing energy to be used in returning the carriage to non-tilted position after said releasable locking means has been released.

4. In a cupola charging apparatus: a skip-carriage track; a skip-carriage; a cupola charging bucket supported on a forward portion of said carriage and having a gravity influenced bottom closure movable between open and closed positions, said bucket and carriage being movable along said track between a loading position and a cupola charging position; a cable connected at one end to the bottom closure of the bucket in a manner to urge said closure toward closed position in response to tension on the cable and to permit gravity opening of the closure when the cable is slackened; means including a reversible power source to which the other end of said cable is connected for causing said tension on the cable and also movement of the skip-carriage with the bucket toward said cupola charging position in response to operation of the power source in one direction; means responsive to said movement of the skip-carriage for thereafter causing tilting of the skip-carriage, whereby its rear portion is raised and its forward portion is lowered to bring'the bucket into charging position and means releasably engageable with the skip-carriage when the latter is in tilted cupola charging position to lock the skip-carriage in cupola charging position so that upon reversal of the power source the cable will slacken and permit opening of the bucket closure by gravity while the bucket and skip- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 772,084 Brown Oct. 11, 1904 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 26,873 Austria Dec. 27, 1906 

